ScrapBlog Series : Ethics, Etiquette, Copyright and Common Laws

You would think that scrapblogging would be easy, right? Open a blog, do a little writing, stick up some of your layouts, and all is hunky dory.

Normally that’s it. Easy.

Unless you suddenly notice that your layout has made an appearance on someone else’s website, or a piece of writing you stuck up there as an opinion on scrapbooking for a few of your friends (heck, you only had one reader last week) suddenly finds itself on someone else’s blog, fully quoted and they never asked you. In fact, it looks like they wrote it themselves, given they forgot to even mention you.

Or, you’ve used some digital freebies you downloaded up there, in your banner, and the designer herself has just emailed you to suggest they’d appreciate it if you had asked, or perhaps credited them. (Yes, this one happened to me - I was crediting them, but obviously not as big in lights as they may have wished).

Your best source for information on etiquettes and copywrites etc are found all put together for you, at About.com. Law and Ethics for Bloggers was put together with several pages of resources including =

• 14 Copywrite Tips
•  3 Things You Must Know about Creative Commons Licenses
• 4 Basic Questions about Copyright and Bloggers
• Top Weblog Ethics and Etiquette Tips
• A quiz on the above
• What to do if your blog is pitched by product promoters
  
• Legal Guide for Bloggers

This resource is one I would recommend you go read. Especially the stuff over copywrite, and etiquette. On the Etiquette page, the very last point is interesting - "Leave a Way for your Readers to Contact You" I have often been surprised to find some blogs I’ve stumbled upon only allow comments from certain people in that community and no other way to contact the actual blog owner. Just how hard is it to register for a free webmail address nowadays?